Ladders are conventionally utilized to provide a user thereof with improved access to elevated locations that might otherwise be inaccessible. Ladders come in many shapes and sizes, such as straight ladders, straight extension ladders, stepladders, and combination step and extension ladders. So-called combination ladders may incorporate, in a single ladder, many of the benefits of multiple ladder designs.
Ladders known as straight ladders or extension ladders are ladders that are conventionally not self-supporting but, rather, are positioned against an elevated surface, such as a wall or the edge of a roof, to support the ladder at a desired angle. A user then ascends the ladder to obtain access to an elevated area, such as access to an upper area of the wall or access to a ceiling or the roof. A pair of feet or pads, each being coupled to the bottom of an associated rail of the ladder, are conventionally used to engage the ground or some other supporting surface.
In certain industries, such as in the telecommunications industry, ladders are used to access overhead cables or utility lines (e.g., cables or wires used for telephones, cable television, etc). In such cases, the ladders are sometimes supported at their upper ends by a utility pole or other vertical structure. In some situations, the upper end of the ladder is actually supported by a utility line extending generally horizontally between adjacent utility poles or towers. In such cases, the ladders have conventionally been fitted with v-braces and/or “cable hooks” (or “strand hooks”). V-braces conventionally include a V-shaped structure configured to receive a portion of a utility pole or similar structure when the ladder is positioned against the pole. However, if the ladder is jostled, bumped or otherwise shifts, the v-brace can easily become disengaged from the pole as it only abuts or contacts the pole along the two inner surfaces of the v-brace.
Cable hooks are conventionally attached to the top of the ladder and simply hook over the top of the utility cable. The top of the ladder, thus, rests against and is supported by the horizontally extending utility cable. However, while the cable hooks generally engage the utility cable to provide support to the ladder, if the ladder shifts or tilts relative to utility cable (e.g., because of unstable ground or because of the user of the ladder leaning out too far to the side and causing the loading on the ladder to be unbalanced), one or both of the cable hooks may disengage the utility cable such that the ladder loses support and stability. This obviously creates a dangerous situation for the user of the ladder.
Thus, there is a continuing desire in the industry to provide improved functionality of ladders while also improving the safety and stability of such ladders.